Data storage and retrieval systems are used to store information provided by one or more host computer systems. Such data storage and retrieval systems receive requests to write information to one or more data storage devices, and requests to retrieve information from those one or more data storage devices. Upon receipt of a write request, the system stores information received from a host computer in one or more data storage devices. Upon receipt of a read request, the system recalls information from the one or more data storage devices. Thus, the system is continuously moving information to and from one or more data storage devices, and optionally to and from a data cache.
Data storage and retrieval systems are often designed to autonomically recover from hardware errors. Error thresholds are set, and when a particular piece of hardware exceeds the applicable error threshold, a permanent hardware error is detected. In response to such a permanent error, the errant resource is disabled. Manual intervention is then required to reset the disabled resource.
Using prior art methods, the default error thresholds cannot be tuned during tests, or in actual use. During a test program, the pre-programmed method which automatically disables an errant device may prevent the tester from simulating a different error test case. In actual use, these prior art methods are troublesome because the default error thresholds may not meet the needs of a customer.
What is needed, for the reasons set forth herein, is a method to adjust one or more device error thresholds. Applicants' invention comprises a method to adjust one or more error thresholds in a data storage and retrieval system.